Sofitel Marseille Vieux Port, Marseille

Advantages: A unique city, full of history and character
Disadvantages: Racy reputation, some grim districts

...approaches are being rebuilt, and we were there at the height of a summer heatwave. A little shabby and seedy in places - in the streets near the station dubious-looking characters are selling oddments of merchandise, old and new, from suitcases or makeshift stalls - but it is easy to ignore their blandishments. This is the Quartier Belsunce, the old Arab quarter, but we are soon through it and into the business district behind the Vieux Port. The Vieux Port is the ancient centre of Marseille, the inlet that formed the original harbour. It is no longer used by serious shipping. New docks, container and ferry terminals have been constructed along the coast to the north, leaving the Vieux Port to cope only with pleasure craft, of which there are plenty. The masts of myriad yachts jut up from the moorings like the bristles... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: An interesting Vieux Port (old port) area, good accommodation options nearby
Disadvantages: A noticeably high crime rate, not a great deal to see outside the port and coast areas

...A “reputation for roguishness and danger”, as an older edition of our guidebook states, at first seemed a rather strange claim to make about Marseille. Regrettably, however, crime rates here are among the highest in France, and our own impressions could do nothing but strengthen this view. I had first visited the city two years ago, in the summer of 1999. That time, I had stayed in a pleasant (though rather unhygienic) youth hostel far from the Vieux Port area, and had avoided any kind of mishap whatsoever. This was still true after a confused two-hour walk back to my accommodation (after the Metro had unexpectedly shut down on Sunday evening), which took me through dark alleyways of the worst description. In fact, it was only other people that ever appeared to hold a grudge against Marseille’s inhabitants... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: It's a Beautiful city with breathtaking views
Disadvantages: Going out for a drink can proove expensive.

...plate and 8€ for a big one, and you can pile up as much as you can get on that plate. It's gormet food, well prepared and all vegetarian. As for the shopping. A small Aubergine in an English supermarket costs .99p, and aubergine twice the size costs .60€ about .30p to .35p. I could go on quoting you price differentials like this. But then I'd end up saying more about the shopping than Marseille, which is what I'm writing about. There are plenty of sights to see, such as Notre Dame de la Guarde, which is a large church with a statue of the Virgin Mary overlooking the city. One can catch le petite train from Vieux Port (the old port), which will take you up to the church, which is well worth the trip. Not only to see the splendour of this magnificent building. But also for the view it affords you of the city and the islands just off... Read review

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